The immortal host of Prince Igor

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St. Petersburg State Universit

The Immortal Host of Prince Igor

E.A. Rostovtsev

Doctor in History, Professor

St. Petersburg, Russian Federation

Annotation

The attention of the author of this paper is focused on “The Tale of Igor's Campaign” (Slovo o polku Igoreve), a famous work of Russian literature. Before the revolution the text was included in the school curriculum, and within the period of 1850-1917 its separate editions exceeded 150. The early Soviet period was marked by a brief decline of the popularity of the “Tale”, but since mid-1930s, the number of its separate editions started to grow, and the negative or indifferent comments on Prince Igor Sviatoslavich in Soviet encyclopedias were replaced by the favorable ones. The heroization of its characters during the Great Patriotic War also contributed to the popularity of the “Tale”. After the war, “The Tale of Igor's Campaign” was effectively used again as a symbol of the unity of three brotherly nations -- Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian. The celebrations of different anniversaries, such as the 750th anniversary of the “Tale” and 150th anniversary of its first publication were also typical of the Soviet era. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the “Tale” has become an object of rivalry between Russia and Ukraine. Each country claims to be the only true heir of the “Tale”, actively contributing to its popularization via publications, the organization of commemorative events and the introduction of its text into school curriculums. However, further prospects of the “Tale” commemoration-wise are quite obscure -- the article argues that the “Tale” (as well as many other literary works) does not constitute an effective tool for building of national past.

Keywords: The Tale of Igor's Campaign, historical memory, historical policy, literary works, the Old Russian book-learning, Igor Sviatoslavovich Novgorod-Seversky, Yaroslavna, Boian, memorial places.

Àííîòàöèÿ

Áåññìåðòíûé ïîëê êíÿçÿ Èãîðÿ

Å. À. Ðîñòîâöåâ

ä-ð èñò. íàóê, ïðîô., Ñàíêò-Ïåòåðáóðãñêèé ãîñóäàðñòâåííûé óíèâåðñèòåò, Ðîññèéñêàÿ Ôåäåðàöèÿ, Ñàíêò-Ïåòåðáóðã

 öåíòðå âíèìàíèÿ àâòîðà ñòàòüè ñàìîå èçâåñòíîå ïðîèçâåäåíèå äðåâíåðóññêîé ëèòåðàòóðû «Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå».  òåêñòå ïðîñëåæèâàåòñÿ èñòîðèÿ âîñòðåáîâàííîñòè «Ñëîâà», âçëåòîâ è ïàäåíèé åãî ïîïóëÿðíîñòè.  äîðåâîëþöèîííûé ïåðèîä «Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå» áûëî âêëþ÷åíî â øêîëüíóþ ïðîãðàììó, à êîëè÷åñòâî åãî îòäåëüíûõ êíèæíûõ èçäàíèé â 1850-1917 ãã. ïåðåâàëèëî çà 150.  íà÷àëå ñîâåòñêîãî ïåðèîäà ïîïóëÿðíîñòü «Ñëîâà» ïàäàåò, îäíàêî íåíàäîëãî. Óæå ñ ñåðåäèíû 1930-õ ãã. ðàñòåò êîëè÷åñòâî îòäåëüíûõ êíèæíûõ èçäàíèé ïàìÿòíèêà, íåãàòèâíûå èëè íåéòðàëüíûå îöåíêè êíÿçÿ Èãîðÿ Ñâÿòîñëàâîâè÷à â ñîâåòñêèõ ýíöèêëîïåäèÿõ ñìåíÿþòñÿ íà ïîçèòèâíûå. Ðîñòó ïîïóëÿðíîñòè ïðîèçâåäåíèÿ ñïîñîáñòâîâàëà ãåðîèçàöèÿ åãî ïåðñîíàæåé â ãîäû Âåëèêîé Îòå÷åñòâåííîé âîéíû.  ïîñëåâîåííîå âðåìÿ «Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå» óñïåøíî èñïîëüçîâàëîñü êàê ñèìâîë åäèíåíèÿ òðåõ áðàòñêèõ íàðîäîâ -- ðóññêèõ, óêðàèíöåâ è áåëîðóñîâ. Äëÿ ñîâåòñêîãî âðåìåíè òàêæå õàðàêòåðíî ïðàçäíîâàíèå þáèëååâ «Ñëîâà»: 750-ëåòèå ñîçäàíèÿ ïàìÿòíèêà è 150-ëåòèå åãî ïåðâîé ïóáëèêàöèè. Êðîìå òîãî, â ñîâåòñêèå ãîäû ïðîäîëæàþò ñîçäàâàòüñÿ ïðîèçâåäåíèÿ èñêóññòâà íà ýòó òåìó: îðàòîðèÿ «Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå» Ë. À. Ïðèãîæèíà (1966 ã.), áàëåò «ßðîñëàâíà» Á. È. Òèùåíêî (1974 ã.), ñèìôîíèÿ «Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå» Î. Ã. ßí÷åíêî (1985 ã.) è ìí. äð. Ïîñëå ðàñïàäà ÑÑÑÐ «Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå» ñòàëî ïðåäìåòîì ñîïåðíè÷åñòâà ìåæäó Ðîññèåé è Óêðàèíîé. Êàæäàÿ èç ñòðàí âèäèò ñåáÿ èñòèííîé íàñëåäíèöåé «Ñëîâà» è ïîòîìó àêòèâíî ñïîñîáñòâóåò åãî ïîïóëÿðèçàöèè -- ïîñðåäñòâîì âêëþ÷åíèÿ â øêîëüíûå ïðîãðàììû, èçäàíèÿ ïàìÿòíèêà, ïðîâåäåíèÿ ðàçëè÷íûõ ñâÿçàííûõ ñ íèì êîììåìîðà- öèé. Îäíàêî äàëüíåéøèå ïåðñïåêòèâû «Ñëîâà» â ëàíäøàôòå ïàìÿòè íå âïîëíå ÿñíû -- â ñòàòüå ïîêàçàíî, ÷òî ýòî ïðîèçâåäåíèå äðåâíåðóññêîé ëèòåðàòóðû (êàê è äðóãèå ëèòåðàòóðíûå ïàìÿòíèêè) íå ÿâëÿåòñÿ ýôôåêòèâíûì èíñòðóìåíòîì äëÿ êîíñòðóèðîâàíèÿ íàöèîíàëüíîãî ïðîøëîãî. Âåðîÿòíî, òàêèìè èíñòðóìåíòàìè áóäóùåé èñòîðè÷åñêîé ïîëèòèêè ìîæåò ñòàòü íå ñòîëüêî «Ñëîâî», ñêîëüêî åãî ïåðñîíàæè -- Èãîðü, ßðîñëàâíà, Áîÿí.

Êëþ÷åâûå ñëîâà: Ñëîâî î ïîëêó Èãîðåâå, èñòîðè÷åñêàÿ ïàìÿòü, èñòîðè÷åñêàÿ ïîëèòèêà, ëèòåðàòóðíûå ïàìÿòíèêè, äðåâíåðóññêàÿ êíèæíîñòü, Èãîðü Ñâÿòîñëàâîâè÷ Íîâãîðîä- Ñåâåðñêèé, ßðîñëàâíà, Áîÿí, ìåñòà ïàìÿòè.

There seem to be few motifs in historiography as widely covered as “The Tale of Igor's Campaign”. At the same time, the discussions mostly focus on the issues of authenticity/time of the creation of the “Tale” and its literary and cultural value See a basic work of the “The Tale”: Entsiklopediia “Slova o polku Igoreve”: v 5 t. / eds L. A. Dmitriev, D. S. Likhachev, S. A. Semiachko, O. V. Tvorogov. St. Petersburg, 1995.. The genesis of the text has been a subject of heated debates for a long time. The manuscript of the “Tale”, obtained by Musin-Pushkin in the 1790s, was lost in the 1812 Fire of Moscow, and the 1800 edition was recognized as the original text Slovo o polku Igoreve. Iroicheskaia pesn' o pokhode na polovtsov udel'nago kniazia Novagoro- da-Severskago Igoria Sviatoslavicha: Pisannaia starinnym russkim iazykom v iskhode XII stoletiia: S pre- lozheniem na upotrebliaemoe nyne narechie. Moscow, 1800.. Many scholars point out the similarity between some motifs of the “Tale” and another well-known work of the Old Russian literature Zadonshchina, which tells of the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380. Although most of the experts believe the “Tale” to have been created circa 1187 (among these there are D. S. Likhachev, A. L. Dmitriev, B. A. Rybakov, O. V. Tvorogov, A. A. Zalizniak and many others), some scholars ascribe it to a later period -- for example, the 13th century (N. Gumilev, D. N. Al'shits), the 15th century (A. G. Bobrov, M. A. Shibaev). Some scholars consider it to be a literary stylization of great talent, in other words -- a hoax of the 18th century. (A. Mazon, A. A. Zimin) See: Istoriia spora o podlinnosti «Slova o polku Igoreve». Materialy diskussii 1960-kh godov / Vst. stat'ia, podgot. tekstov, komment. L. V. Sokolovoi. SPb., 2010; Mazon A. Le Slovod' Igor. Paris, 1940; Likhachev D. S.: 1) “Slovo o polku Igoreve”. Istoriko-literaturnyi ocherk. Moscow; Leningrad, 1962; 2) Zolo- toe slovo russkoi literatury // Slovo o Polku Igoreve / podgot. teksta i vstup. stat'ia D. S. Likhacheva. Moscow, 1987. P 3-20; Zimin A. A.: 1) Slovo o polku Igoreve. St. Petersburg, 2006; 2) Spornye voprosy tekstologii “Zadonshchiny” // Russkaia literatura. 1967. No. 1. P 84-104; Dmitrieva R., Dmitriev L., Tvorogov O. Po povodu stat'i A. A. Zimina “Spornye voprosy tekstologii `Zadonshchiny'” // Russkaia literatura. 1967. No. 1. P 105-121; Rybakov B. A. Petr Borislavich. Poisk avtora slova o Polku Igoreve. Moscow, 1991; Shibaev M. A.: 1) “Zadonshchina”, “Slovo o Polku Igoreva” i Kirillo-Belozerskii monastyr' // Ocherki feodal'noi Rossii. Moscow, 2003. Iss. VII. P 29-57; 2) “Slovo o polku Igoreve” i politicheskie sobytiia serediny XV v. // Trudy kafedry istorii Rossii s drevneishikh vremen do XX veka. St. Petersburg, 2006. P. 503-508; Bobrov A. G. Problema podlinnosti “Slova o polku Igoreve” i Efrosin Belozerskii // Acta Slavica Iaponica. Sapporo, 2005. Vol. 22. P 238-298; Gumilev L. N. Mongoly XIII v. i “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Doklady otdeleniia etnografii. Leningrad, 1966. Iss. 2. P 55-80; Zalizniak A. “Slovo o polku Igoreve”: vzgliad lingvista. Moscow, 2003; and others. See also: Dmitriev L. A. Vremia sozdaniia “Slova” // Entsiklopediia “Slova o polku Igoreve”. Vol. 1. P 246-251.. Heated debates about the “Tale” and its authenticity/ falsity in the historiographic and semi-historiographic milieu have not ceased even now Zimin A. A. Khram nauki (razmyshleniia o prozhitom). M., 1976 // Sud'by tvorcheskogo naslediia otechestvennykh istorikov vtoroi poloviny XX veka. Moscow, 2015. P 35-384; Kozlova N. A. O piratskom izdanii knigi A. A. Zimina “Khram nauki”: Zaiavlenie docheri i naslednitsy avtorskikh prav uchenogo N. A. Ziminoi (2015).; Bazanov M. A. Memuary A. A. Zimina “Khram nauki”: kartina nauchnoi sredy i nabor tsennostnykh orientirov avtora // Is- toricheskaia ekspertiza. 2016. No. 4. P 232-247.. In fact, this aspect is not particularly relevant to the issues covered by this article. Rather, its main objective is to analyze the “Tale” and the image of Prince Igor in the context of the historical memory of the modern and contemporary time.

The invention of a memorial place. The question whether Prince Igor Sviatoslavich and his Polovtsian campaigns were well-known to the public (at the level of mass historic consciousness) in medieval Russia has a univocal answer -- no, they were not, although the detailed account of the 1185 battle can be found in Russian chronicles Letopisnye povesti o pokhode kniazia Igoria. Iz Ipatevskoi letopisi // Pamiatniki literatury Drevnei Rusi. XII vek. Moscow, 1980. P 230-246., and a number of researchers propose a hypothesis about its impact on Zadonshchina and other Old Russian texts See, for example: Dmitrieva R. P. Zadonshchina // Entsiklopediia “Slova o polku Igoreve”. Vol. 2. P 202-211.. Probably, it can be explained by the fact that the dismissive attitude of “Tale” towards Vladimir Monomakh and Vsevolod the Big Nest, whose images were of great importance for the ideologists of the 16th century, ran counter to the memory policy of the

Muscovite autocracy Alshits D. N. Legenda o Vsevolode -- polemicheskii otklik XVI v. na “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Trudy otdela drevnerusskoi literatury. Moscow; Leningrad, 1958. Vol. 14. P. 64-70.. Anyway, by the dawn of the modern time Prince Igor and his host had fallen into oblivion.

The introduction of the “Tale” into the public space and cultural memory took place in the first quarter of the 19th century mostly due to the “Columbus of Russian antiquities” N. M. Karamzin, who had translated the “Tale” and featured it in his work “The History of the Russian State”, which was recognized as a real bestseller of the time Karamzin N. M. Istoriia Gosudarstva Rossiiskogo. St. Petersburg, 1816. Vol. I II. P. 536. -- On the relevance of the works of N. M. Karamzin as a translator and analyst see, for example: Dmitriev L. A.

N. M. Karamzin i “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Trudy otdela drevnerusskoi literatury. Moscow; Leningrad, 1962. Vol. 18. P. 38-49.. As we know from literature -- many writers, contemporaries of Karamzin (N. I. Gnedich, N. V. Gogol, M. Yu. Lermontov and others) showed interest in the “Tale” Priima F Ia. “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” v russkom istoriko-literaturnom protsesse. Moscow, 1980.. It is necessary to point out the significance of the popularization of the text by A. S. Pushkin, a genius of the nation and the “sun of Russian poetry”, who emphatically insisted that Russian writers of the 18th century (with the exception of G. R. Derzhavin) en masse “did not have enough poetic talent to rival the lament of Yaroslavna, the description of the battle and the flight”, thus rejecting the very idea of the modern time falsification of the text On A. S. Pushkin and the “The Tale” see numerous works of literature, in particular: Odinokov V. G. “Slovo o polku Igoreve” v otsenke Pushkina // Izvestiia Sibirskogo otdeleniia AN SSSR. 1986. No. 14. Ser. istorii, filologii i filosofii. Iss. 3. P 33-37; Priima F Ia. “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” v russkom istoriko-literaturnom protsesse. P 156-178.. For A. S. Pushkin, who “had reared a monument not built by human hands”, it was important to embed in the public consciousness the ideas of the “shallowness of Russian literature” and, in particular, of “ `The Tale of Igor's Campaign' standing out against the desert of the Old Russian literature” Pushkin A. S. O nichtozhestve literatury russkoi // Pushkin A. S. Sobranie sochinenii: v 10 t. Vol. 6. Moscow, 1962. P 408.. The proverb states that the exception proves the rule. Pushkin's view on the “Tale” is similar to that of other classics of the golden age of Russian literature -- A. S. Griboedov, A. N. Ostrovskii, A. K. Tolstoi, A. N. Maikov and many others See, for example: Sazonova L. I. Pamiat' kul'tury i barokko v russkoi literature Novogo vremeni. Moscow, 2012. P 22.. Leading literary critic Belinsky, who not only undertook his own translation of the text but also expressed his stong opinion on its literary merits, having, yet, denied the existence of some “profound message” in it, agreed with these outstanding writers Belinskii V. G. (Stat'i o narodnoi poezii) // Sochineniia V. Belinskogo Moscow, 1885. Ch. 5. P 7-24. -- On the ideas of Belinsky about the “Song” see, for example: Bulakhov M. G. Belinskii // Bulakhov M. G. “Slovo o polku Igoreve” v literature, iskusstve, nauke: Kratkii entsiklopedicheskii slovar'. Minsk, 1989. P 2628; Ol'shanskii O. E. V. G. Belinskii i “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Naukovi zapiski Slovians'kogo derzhavnogo pedagogichnogo Instituta. Vol. 2. Seriia Istoriko-filologichna. Iss. 2. Slov'ians'k, 1957. P 118-140.. For the Soviet historiography the last part of Belinsky's statement turned out to be unacceptable. As one of the authors claimed -- “Belinskii failed to perceive the profundity of the patriotic idea which underlies the narrative of the `Tale'” Berezina V. G. V. G. Belinskii i “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” // Russkaia literatura. 1986. No. 3. P 147-153..

It is difficult to say to what extent the views of the skeptics (M. T. Kachenovskii, O I. Senkovskii, M. N. Katkov, I. I. Davydov and others) impeded the entrenchment of the “Tale” in the public consciousness See, for example: Zimin A. A. Slovo o polku Igoreve. P 387-401.. In popularity in socio-political sphere the skeptics were much more inferior to the advocates of the “Tale”. It is noteworthy that both forward-looking public and the authorities joined efforts in its popularization -- for both the “Tale” became an important constituent element for the construction of their own versions of the national past. From the second half of the 19th century at the instigation of F. I. Buslaev it was introduced into the school curriculum in literature, where it remains to this day Buslaev F. O prepodavanii otechestvennogo iazyka. Moscow, 1844. Part 2. P. 237. Based on the NLR catalogue.. It is also one of the few literary works, which despite social and political cataclysms have remained in the list of “normative texts” (the texts, which from the point of view of memory studies are obligatory for all to read) for 150 years.

It should be emphasized that throughout the modern time the “Tale” was the most often published text of the pre-Petrine period. Within the period from 1850 to 1917, the number of the separate editions of the “Tale” doubled the total number of the editions of other popular texts, including “Russian' Justice” (Russkaia Pravda), “The Tale of Bygone Years” (Povest' vremennykh let) and “The Journey Beyond Three Seas” (Khozhdenie za tri moria) by Afanasii Nikitin (Table 1).

Table 1. The number of separate editions of pre-Petrine texts (1708-2017)17

It can be stated that it was due to the outstanding figures of the “golden age” of Russian literature that the “Tale” was integrated into the cultural memory of the nation. “Prince Igor”, a masterpiece of two great composers A. P. Borodin and I. A. Rimskii-Korsakov Compare, for example: Bulycheva A. Kniaz' Igor' Borodina ili Rimskogo-Korsakova? // Operamu- sicologica. 2010. No. 4 (6). P. 70-99. Sud'in G. G. “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” v russkoi filosofii i kul'ture // Filo- sofiia i obshchestvo, 2014. Ianvar' -- mart. No. 1. P. 179-186., and paintings of such famous artists as V. M. Vasnetsov and V. G. Perov contributed to the natural realization of this process. Late introduction of the text into mass consciousness by no means impeded its impact on the cultural milieu of the Silver Age. Some of its most outstanding representatives (V. S. Solovev, V. Briusov, M. Voloshin, N. Adamovich, M. Tsvetaeva and others) Sazonova L. I. Pamiat' kul'tury i barokko v russkoi literature Novogo vremeni. Moscow, 2012. P. 1966. took purposely the ideas from the imagery of the “Tale” in their works. What is equally important, the “Tale” and the quotes from it got entrenched even in the literary language of the authors who did not write about it intentionally, like, for example, I. A. Bunin, a classic of Russian literature of the first half of the 20th century and a Nobel Prize winner Romanicheva E. S. “Slovo o polku Igoreve” v rannei lirike I. A. Bunina // Literatura Drevnei Rusi / ed. by N. I. Prokofeva. Moscow, 1983. Iss. 4. P. 133-139.. The integration of the “Tale” into cultural memory inevitably resulted in its constant presence in the life of common people who were not deeply involved in cultural life. Opening any newspaper, irrespective of its agenda, an average reader could almost every day come across the advertisements and reviews of opera “Prince Igor” and, having subscribed to magazine Niva -- the most popular in Russia in the late 19th -- early 20th centuries, published in large editions -- would receive a set of illustrations for the “Tale” in addition to new issues Miamlin I. “Slovo” i ego illiustratory // Neva. 1964. No. 4. P. 206.. Above all, the children of all social classes at different type of schools were required to learn the “Tale” by heart. Thus, in the 19th -- early 20th centuries the “Tale...” and its characters firmly gained ground among the most important elements of the social memory of medieval Russia, which has remained virtually unchangeable throughout two centuries See, for example: Rostovtsev E. A., Sosnitskii D. A.: 1) Zabytyi zolotoi vek: Iaroslav Mudryi i Rus' Iaroslava -- pereosmysleniia XIX -- nachala XXI v. // Rusin. 2016. No. 4 (46). P. 26-43; 2) “Kulikovskii plen”: obraz Dmitria Donskogo v natsional'noi istoricheskoi pamiati // Quaestio Rossica. 2017. Vol. 5, no. 4. P. 1149-1163; 3) Kniaz' Vladimir Velikii kak natsional'nyi geroi: sozdanie obraza // Dialog so vremenem. 2018. No. 4 (65). P. 150-164..

A knight from the era of Russian feudalism. Could the situation with the “Tale...” have changed in the context of the new Soviet realities and the regime, whose memory policy is known to have been aggressive and destructive towards the myths of the past? At some point it seemed quite possible. The main “proletarian” poet Vladimir Maiakovsky in his poem “A grammar-school boy or a builder” (Gimnazist ili stroitel', 1927) ridiculed the pointless curriculum of old gymnasiums and among other absurdities touched upon the “Tale”: “V bashku vtemiashivaiut, gody tratia: Ne lepo li biashe, bratie'” (They used to hammer into our heads: Is not it time, brothers.) Maiakovskii V. V. Gimnazist ili stroitel' // Maiakovskii V. V. Sobranie sochinenii: v 8 t. Vol. 5. Moscow, 1968. P 364. Compare: Uvarov K. A. Slovo o Polku Igoreve v literaturno-esteticheskoi otsenke V. V. Maia- kovskogo // Russkaia literatura XX veka. Sovetskaia literatura. Moscow, 1975. P 257-262.. However, this period of cultural nihilism did not last long. The dynamics of the popularity of the “Tale” is clearly seen in Table 1 and diagram. The latter demonstrates gradual growth in the number of the editions of the text after a dramatic fall (six times less) at the beginning of the Soviet era: if in 19201934 there were only 9 separate editions of the “Tale” published, in the 1980-1994 this number amounted to 57 (which broke the record of fifteen years 1905-1919).

It is noteworthy that in the pre-Soviet times the “Tale” remains the most published text of the pre-Petrine period. What is more, the number of its separate editions exceeds those of all other texts in the 18th century as well (see Table 1). In these circumstances the “Tale” and its characters were destined to remain among those few objects of historical memory relating to the Middle Ages which played an important role in the mass historical consciousness of the Soviet society.

The dynamics of the publications of “The Tale of Igor's Campaign” (1800-2009) Based on the NLR catalogue.

Soviet encyclopedias of different periods demonstrate the changes in the interpretation of the “Tale” in the official Soviet discourse of the 1930s. Thus, if the article in the first edition of the Small Soviet Encyclopedia (Malaia Sovetskaia Entsiklopediia, 1930) briefly characterizes the “Tale” as a “literary work dating back to the era of emerging Russian feudalism” Sokolov Yu. Slovo o polku Igoreve // Malaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia: v 10 t. / ed. by N. L. Meshche- riakov. Vol. 8. Moscow, 1930. Col. 31-32., the article in the second edition turns out to be three times as long praising the “Tale” as an “immortal work of the Old Russian literature, a great poem of the 12th century, permeated with a feeling of deep patriotism” Novikov I. “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Malaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia. Vol. 9. Col. 786-788.. The change in the view on Igor Sviatoslavovich and the “Tale” can be traced in the first edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia (Bolshaia Sovetskaia Entsiklopediia), the publication of which was extended in time. Thus, the article about the Prince was published in 1933, and the one, focusing on the “Tale”, in 1945. The former consists of several lines and emphasizes the class affinity between Igor and Konchak, a Polovetsian Khan, as “he had married his son off to the daughter of Konchak (as it is typical of the Slavic and Turkic feudals to join forces through marriage)” Igor' Sviatoslavich // Bolshaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia: v 65 t. Moscow, 1933. Vol. 27. Col. 409.. The article on the “Tale” written by famous historian and expert in the Old Russian literature N. K. Gudzii, is much more extensive and amounts to several pages. The author not only refers to such authorities as A. S. Pushkin and K. Marx in order to prove the authenticity and cultural significance of the “Tale”, but also comes up with an idea which was of great importance for the Soviet historiography. “No other work of the Old Russian literature -- argues N. K. Gudzii -- can provide such a comprehensive account of the knightly way of life in Kievan Rus' as it was done by the `Tale. Igor and Vsevolod are portrayed there as warriors guided by honor and glory in all their actions <...> other princes, featured in the `Tale, are also distinguished by knightly courage and military valor” Gudzii N. “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” // Bolshaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia. Vol. 51. Col. 410.. Another important message of the article aims at the cultural consolidation of the Soviet people: “Having originated from Kievan Rus, the common cradle of three fraternal peoples -- the Great Russians, the Ukrainians and the Belarusians -- it by right belongs to all of them” Ibid. Col. 410-411.. In the second edition of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia the article about Prince Igor is much more extensive and does not contain any negative allusions to his feudal kinship with Konchak. It states that Igor's host was confronted by the “superior forces of Polovetsian hordes”, that he himself was “wounded in the arm” and taken prisoner but escaped captivity later Igor' Sviatoslavich // Bolshaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia 2 izd. / ed. by S. I. Vavilov. Vol. 17. Moscow, 1952. P. 312..

There was a predilection for the quotes from the classics (often used randomly) in the Soviet scholarly or semi-scholarly literature. As the main Soviet classic and his devoted companion (Lenin and Stalin) had never written a word about the “Tale”, several sentences from the letter of Karl Marx to Friedrich Engels of March 5, 1856 about the book by F. G. Eichhoff “History of the Language and Literature of the Slavs”, which Karl Marx was reading at that time, came in handy. Scholars were particularly partial to one quotation from Marx: “The main idea of the poem is the appeal of Russian Princes for integration on the threshold of the invasion of Mongolian hordes” Marks -- Engel'su, v Manchester, [London] 5 marta 1856 g. // Marks K., Engel's F. Sochineniia. Vol. 29. P 16.. These two motifs -- knightly-lyrical and patriotic -- were the cornerstone of the Soviet interpretation of the “Tale”. According to the leading article of “Pravda” (Russian newspaper) of May 25, 1938, which commemorated the anniversary of the “Tale”, “the author of the text was imbued with noble ideas of honor and gallantry <. > these chivalrous feelings are close and transparent to our people and our heroes” Bessmertnoe tvorenie drevnei russkoi literatury // Pravda. 1938. 25 maia. No. 142 (7467). P 1.. The Soviet patriotic poetry of the period of the Great Patriotic War made a particular emphasis on the “Tale”. The poem of Olga Bergol'tz “.I will talk to you today...” (...Ia budu segodnia s toboigovorit', 1941) compares the heroic deeds of Prince Igor's warriors and the feat of the defenders of Leningrad Berggol'ts O. “Ne dam zabyt..”. Izbrannoe. St. Petersburg, 2014. P 152.. Other poets of the war time (P. N. Voronko, A. S. Malyshko, P. G. Antokolskii, N. L. Braun and others) also drew inspiration from the “Tale” Sazonova L. I. Pamiat' kul'tury i barokko v russkoi literature Novogo vremeni. Moscow, 2012. P 62; Derzhavina A. O. Obraz Yaroslavny v tvorchestve poetov XIX-XX vv. // Slovo o polku Igoreve: Pamiatniki literatury i iskusstva XI-XVI vv. Moscow, 1978. P 189-190.. It was often referred to in order to support the traditional Russian myth about the “eternal unity” and “common destiny” of fraternal Slavic peoples in its Soviet interpretation See, for example: Vodovozov N. V. N. V. Gogol' i “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Uchenye zapiski MGPI. Moscow, 1954. Vol. 34. P 12-13..

Since the 1930s the “Tale” had again played an important patriotic role in the Soviet educational literature. Its protagonist is featured as one of those progressive-minded princes who endeavored to eradicate fragmentation in Rus' and to maintain peaceful coexistence of the princes with each other and with common people. With religious literature being excluded from the school curriculum, (due to this fact the popularity of St. Vladimir decreased significantly) See: RostovtsevE. A., Sosnitskii D. A. Vladimir Sviatoi -- voskreshenie obraza // Dialog so vremenem. 2019. No. 4. P. 307-321., “The Tale of Igor's Campaign” remained one of few medieval texts studied at schools. This contributed to the popularization of the image of Prince Igor Sviatoslavich Novgorod-Severskii. One of the Soviet textbooks on literature gives the following description of him: “Getting ready for the campaign, he [Prince Sveto- slav Vsevolodovich] called upon other princes to join forces with him. One of the princes who offered assistance to Sviatoslav was Igor, Prince Novgorod-Severskii. This Prince was famous for his courage and effective warfare against Polovtsy” See, for example: Florinskii S. M. Russkaia literature: uchebnoe posobie dlia 9 klassa srednei shkoly. Moscow, 1964. P. 18.. Moreover, like other objects of the memory of pre-Mongolian Rus', Igor and his host were equally welcome at the pages of both Soviet and emigrant textbooks on history and literature See, for example: VipperR. Yu. Uchebnik istorii. Srednie veka. Riga, 1925. P. 189-190.. The fact that they were a place of consensus in cultural memory can account for this. However, it is noteworthy that Igor Sviatoslavich Novgorod-Severskii gained such authority only due to the “Tale...” (Even in the textbooks on Russian history the Prince as a historical figure receives little attention).

In the context of the official historiographic doctrine the “Tale” stands out as a striking literary work, a monument to the era of feudal fragmentation, the evidence of the highest level of the cultural and spiritual development of Rus' on the eve of the Mongol invasion. This position was comprehensively elaborated in numerous texts by academician D. S. Likhachev and the experts of his school. Here is one of the typical comments on the “Tale” of this renowned scholar and public figure: “This integration of all Russian lands into one tangible, lively and emotive image, the wide expanses and scenery of the native Russian land -- embody one of the author's most vehement appeals for integration. It can be stated that the basic idea of the `Tale' is inextricably linked to its realization. An appeal for integration naturally arises from the central image of the `Tale' -- that of a united, beautiful and suffering motherland. This image evokes sympathy for the Russian land, love for its nature, pride in its historical past and awareness of its untamable force” Likhachev D. S. Velikoe nasledie. Moscow, 1975. P. 164. Compare with articles in encyclopedias: Dmitriev L. A. “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” // Sovetskaia istoricheskaya entsiklopediia Moscow, 1971. Vol. 13. Stb. 69-70; Likhachev D. S.: 1) “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” // Bolshaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia. Moscow, 1976. Vol. 23. P. 581-582; 2) “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” // Kratkaia literaturnaia entsiklopediia. Moscow, 1971. Vol. 6. P. 962-963; Bulanin D. M. “Slovo o Polku Igoreve” // Literaturnyi entsiklopedicheskii slovar'. Moscow, 1987. P. 388-389..

Since the late 1930s, the practice of regular commemorative events related to the “Tale” was established in the USSR: in 1938, the “750th anniversary” of the “Tale” was celebrated. and in 1950 -- 150 years since its first publication “Slovo o polku Igoreve” // Bolshaia sovetskaia entsiklopediia. Vol. 39. P. 357.. On the territory of the present-day Russia and Ukraine a number of monuments were erected to Boian and Igor' Sviatoslavich not only in the places of the hypothetical past events, but also in the places allegedly associated with the activities of these characters Voinov S. S. Pamiatniki, posviashchennye “Slovu” // Entsiklopediia “Slova o polku Igoreve”: v 5 t. Vol. 4. P. 8-9; Filiushkin A. I. Kogda i zachem stali stavit' pamiatniki istoricheskim personazham Drevnei Rusi? // Drevniaia Rus': vo vremeni, v lichnostiakh, v ideiakh. 2017. No. 7. P 382-397.. Under such circumstances the issues raised in the “Tale” would necessarily have been of ideological nature. This was highly visible in the 1960s discussions about the hypothesis of A. A. Zimin, who had put forward an idea about the “Tale” being a forgery. This case was repeatedly featured in scholarly literature and journals. According to one of the participants of a close-door meeting in 1962, which discussed Zimin's book on the “Tale”, “It is unsurprising that intelligentsia sympathized with a persecuted person and the idea of the text as a relatively recent construct aroused kindly interest” Al'tshuller M. Kto napisal “Slovo o polku Igoreve”? (Rets. na kn.: Kostin A. Slovo o polku Igoreve -- poddelka tysiacheletiia. M.: Algoritm, 2014).. It is important to note that the authorities were very sensitive to any non-mainstream hypotheses about the “Tale” targeting the general public. In connection with the case of A. A. Zimin, it is necessary to mention an “academic crackdown” on O. O. Suleimanov Suleimenov O. Az i Ia: Kniga blagonamerennogo chitatelia. Alma-Ata, 1975. and A. L. Nikitin Nikitin A. L. Slovo o polku Igoreve. Teksty. Sobytiia. Liudi. Moscow, 1998. regarding non-mainstream versions of the “Tale's” origin.

At the same time, it is hardly possible to limit the debates about the “Tale” to the issue of official patriotism promoted in the context of the Soviet ideological trends. Challenging the view of the “Tale” as a great work of the Old Russian literature, its opponents spoke against the fundamental principles of the national cultural memory embodied in this text of Russian culture. Tables 2-5 demonstrate that the significance of the “Tale” in the Soviet period did not decline in comparison with the past, but on the contrary, showed considerable growth due to the fact that the “Tale” had taken the roots in different cultural practices.

Doubts about the authenticity of the “Tale” Compare: Sokolova L. V. K istorii diskussii 1960-kh gg. o podlinnosti “Slova o Polku Igoreve” // Istoriia spora o podlinnosti “Slova o polku Igoreve”. Materialy diskussii 1960-kh godov. St. Petersburg, 2010. P. 96-97. touched a sore spot of such exiled intellectual leaders of Russian emigration and Russian historical Science as P. N. Miliukov Miliukov P N. Eres' professora Mazona. [Ch] I-II // Poslednie novosti. 1939. 25 maia, 2 iiunia. -- See a republication by P. N. Miliukov: Maloizvestnaia stat'ia P. N. Miliukova 1939 g. o rabote A. Mazona «Slovo o Polku Igoreve» (podg. D. M. Shakhovskoi) // Arkheograficheskii ezhegodnik za 2000. Moscow, 2001. P. 467-473. and G. V. Vernadskii Vernadsky G. La Geste d'Igor au point de vue historique // La Geste du Prince Igor - épopée russe du douzième siècle (texte établi, traduit et commenté sous la direction d'H. Grégoire, R. Jakobson et M. Szeftel, assistés de J. A. Joffe). New York, 1948. P. 217-234. Compare: Dvornichenko A. Yu. Russkii istorik Georgii Vernadskii. St. Petersburg, 2017. P. 302-303.. Russian world-famous émigré writers, who used the images from the “Tale” in their works, like V. V. Nabokov, also didn't question its authenticity⁴⁹ The figures in parenthesis indicate the place in the rating of the local object in this source type (marked when objects share several positions in the rating). Relatively monumental sculpture the figures in parenthesis indicate the place in the rating taking into account the monuments, erected from 1850 to 1917, the figures in square brackets indicated the place in the rating, taking into account the monuments, erected earlier. See: Sosnitskii D. A. Istoricheskaia pamiat' o dopetrovskoi Rusi v Rossii vtoroi poloviny XIX -- na- chala XXI v.: dis. ... kand. ist. nauk. St. Petersburg, 2015. P. 62-63.

⁵⁰ The figures in parenthesis indicate the place in the rating of the local object in this source type (marked when objects share several positions in the rating). See.: Sosnitskii D. A. Istoricheskaia pamiat' o dopetrovskoi Rusi... P. 113-115.. In this connection it is important to note that in the Soviet period the number of the works of art related to the “Tale” and associated with the so-called “high culture”, in other words, the number of pieces which claimed to have a long-term impact on the information field

Table 2. The rating of the local objects of historical memory in the analyzed sources (1850-1917)49

continued to grow. In addition to regular performances of A. P. Borodin's opera Prince Igor, other musical compositions by Soviet composers were created. Among them, we can mention “The Tale of Igor's Campaign”, an oratorio by L. A. Prigozhin (1966), the symphony by O. G. Ianchenko of the same name (1985) and ballet “Yaroslavna” by B. I. Tishchenko (1974). Similarly to the pre-revolutionary period, “cultural background” exerted influence on mass consciousness. From school years to old age the average Soviet people would come across the “Tale” everywhere: doing their school homework, turning over the pages of a newspaper or scanning theatre posters.

Table 3. The rating of the local objects of historical memory in the analyzed sources (1918-1991

Table 4. The rating of the local objects of historical memory in the analyzed sources (1992-2010)51

Table 5. The most popular local objects of the historical memory of the pre-Petrine Rus'(1850-2010)52

The defender of Ukraine/Russia and the “black hole” of historiography. Being the main “common” property of the East Slavic peoples, the “Tale” by no means became less popular at the time of the “post-Soviet disintegration”, quite the other way round. Indeed, it was due to the entrenchment of the “Tale” and its protagonist in the pantheon of the main heroic objects of the medieval past in the consciousness of many generations of the Soviet people that this “treasure of Ukrainian lyric epic literature” (as one of Ukrainian text-books on literature features the “Tale”) Slovo o polku Igoreve (programma po ukrainskoi literature) 8 klass // Ukrainskaia literatura 8 klass 2015-2016. turned not only into an object of rivalry between its East Slavic inheritors, but also into an instrument of the formation of different national identities. As in Ukraine, Russian schoolchildren nowadays begin the study of their native literature with the “Tale” (it is interesting that after that they proceed to the works of M. V. Lomonosov). We will quote one of the typical methodological tips on the analysis of the “Tale” at Russian schools: “The text can be traced back to the 1180s. This period witnessed a decline of the Russian state in the first place as a result of the princely strife, which had undermined the military power of Rus'. The author of the `Tale' appealed for the integration of princes, having expressed in his work the aspirations of the Russian people of those days <...> `The Tale of Igor's Campaign' is a priceless treasure of Russian culture which evokes the lofty public spirit in the hearts of the readers” Chapova O. I., Artemeva N. A., Podshivalova L. V. Vse proizvedeniia shkol'noi programmy v kratkom izlozhenii. Moscow, 2008. P. 3-4.. The “Tale” is still actively exploited in the cultural space of both states. The authorities of the Donetsk People's Republic also did not fail to take advantage of the “Tale” in the context of their own “memory of the war”, having organized a national park in a region where, according to one of the versions, some events of the “Tale” had taken place Soroka E. Tam razvorachivalis' sobytiia iz “Slova o polku Igoreve”: Chto v sebe tait novyi zapovednik DNR? // Komsomol'skaia pravda v Donetske. 2020. 5 fevralia.. It is an interesting, but quite expected fact, that the imagery of the “Tale” was exploited in the poetry of the “hybrid” war, where the forces of Igor Strelkov are identified with the host of Igor Sviatoslavich Benevich G. V. Poeziia gibridnoi voiny // Novoe literaturnoe obozrenie. 2019. No. 3 (157). P. 226-238.. heroization character symbol

Table 4, given above, demonstrates that the “Tale” still holds its positions as one of the traditional tools of the formation of mass historical perceptions. At the same time, modern infomedia despite the existence of different methods to control it, is becoming more and more network content-oriented and interactive. In this context, the analysis of internet resources is of great interest. It is noteworthy that according to the results of some internet queries and the analysis of the most popular networks, neither the “Tale” no Igor Sviatoslavich are among the most sought-after historical objects of the interactive content. Reference network resources represent a certain exception to this rule. According to Wikipedia (which records the number of queries of not only the Russian audience, but Russian-speaking audience all over the world as well), the “Tale” ranks 12th in the number of queries about the objects of the historical memory of pre-Petrine Russia. At the same time, the “Tale” has outstripped such search objects as Dmitrii Donskoi, “Oprichnina” or the “Battle on the Neva” (Nevskaia bitva) and all the pre-Petrine works, including “The Tale of Bygone Years” and “Russian' Justice”. It is remarkable that the statistics for the queries about Igor Sviatoslavich, the protagonist of the “Tale”, clearly demonstrate the insignificant attention the readers of Wikipedia pay to this character (see Table 6).

Table 6. Wikipedia information (the number of visits of internet pages on Russian medieval history in 2015-2020)57

The relevance of these data is confirmed by the fact that they have not undergone any significant changes of late. In particular, according to our estimates, in 2017 the “Tale” also ranked 12th in this rating See: Rostovtsev E. A., Sosnitskii D. A. Srednevekovye geroi i sobytiia otechestvennoi istorii v setevykh resursakh // Istoricheskaia ekspertiza. 2018. No. 1. P. 41-58.. In the framework of the Wikipedia statistics, it can be suggested that under current circumstances the “Tale” is being backed by the interrelated cultural, educational and scholarly traditions of referring to this text rather than its exploitation as a political tool and as an object of the memory policy of the state. The latter mostly counts on the popularization of the heroic events and the characters rather than the texts, with Igor Sviatoslavich or the defeat he suffered from Pololvtsy hardly being among such objects. In this connection low popularity of the “Tale” as an object of cyberspace reflects general indifference of the mass consciousness towards intellectual and aesthetic values of the high culture. However, this fact doesn't tarnish the status of the “Tale” as the most popular patriotic hymn and the oldest Russian heroic song; but it is the cultural and historiographic tradition (which has been developing for the last 200 years) that this status is based on. Indeed, the “Tale” together with “The Russian Justice” ranks 1st-2nd in popularity in modern scholarly literature (see Table 7).

According to the RSCI information, we can see that within the period from 1992 to 2017 there were published at least 467 texts dedicated to the “Tale”. It is interesting that only 27 of them (around 5,6 %) have 5 or more citations In fact the situation has not changed in 2020 as well. From 1992 to 2020 the number of such texts amounts to 705. Of these 49 (6,5 %) have 5 or more citations. (Estimates are based on: the Scientific Electronic Library. Elibrary.ru.. Such a situation with the study of historical texts can hardly be called unusual. However, the number of the unquoted (unused) texts about the “Tale” has significantly outstripped the number of the unquoted works dedicated to other historical texts, having become a kind of a “black hole” -- again and again sucking in new generations of scholars. It is noteworthy that the stream of Ukrainian scholarly literature related to the “Tale” started to grow significantly in the post-Soviet era See, for example: Kostikova 1.1. Vivchennia “Slova o Polku Igorevim” v Ukraini u 1970-1990-kh rokakh: avtoref. dis... kand. filol. nauk. Khar'kiv, 1998.. Curiously, some Ukrainian scholars who advocate the idea of the falsification of the “Tale” consider it to be a tool of propaganda, “a disgraceful element of the Russian world”, unmistakably “a Russian hoax”, similar to the the “story of a crucified boy” and the like. Their opponents, the champions of the authenticity of the “Tale”, on the contrary, insist that “the text entirely belongs to Ukrainian culture. Allegedly, it was taken f...